Tektites for Protection and Grounding?

I have just recently hosted a crystal workshop where we spent a fair amount of time discussing tektites and meteorites. I thought it pertinent to write about Tektites and Meteorites having also come across so many websites of late that list among the healing qualities of tektites, that they are: Calming, Grounding, Protect from EMFs, Clear and Unblock Chakras. One of the best stones to use for psychic protection, as negative entities find it difficult to connect to your aura when you are wearing it, and can be used to help remove fear from people and situations, as well as to assist people who are suffering from depression brought on by fear.

Knowing what tektites are and from where they originate, I felt it necessary to review some of these uses and look at whether these stones are really suitable for what they are being prescribed.

Tektites are silica-rich glass objects that were once believed to be meteorites. However their distribution on the Earth, and their chemistry, have now led some scientists to postulate that they may not in fact have an extra-terrestrial origin. Their composition is similar to volcanic rocks and in fact is pretty close to obsidian (volcanic glass)… These rocks have a high silica content and are also rich in oxides of potassium, calcium and aluminium. Tektites result from the melting of terrestrial rocks on the impact of a meteorite. Included within the name of tektite are moldavite (green tektite originating from the Moldawa river region in the Czech Republic at the site of a meteorite impact crater) and Libyan Desert Glass Tektite (pale yellow tektite originating from the Saharan desert between Libya and Egypt).

Although many still believe that tektites are meteorites, they are in fact not. Meteorites generally will, if not burned up during the descent down through our atmosphere, create an impact crater that is roughly 10 to 40 times larger than the meteorite that formed it. For instance the Barringer crater in Arizona which has a diameter of 1.6km was formed by a meteorite with a diameter of approx. 40 metres. It is the angle at which the meteorite descends through the atmosphere that determines its speed and hence the size of the impact crater. The reason I mention this is that, by the time we start mining the impact crater, the meteorite that created it, is often eroded away and all that remains are the rocks melted by the impact, i.e. the tektites. The material melted on impact, thrown up into the atmosphere or space, and then landed, resolidified within the impact crater or the strewn field which surrounds it.

Although tektites are thus not extra-terrestrial per se (being that it was terrestrial material that was melted to form them), they have been formed by contact of extra-terrestrial material. Some may even contain some of the material from the meteorites themselves. It is this contact with extra-terrestrial material (or the incorporation of the meteoric material) which makes it impossible for them to serve as grounding stones. In order for a stone to be grounding, it has to be purely terrestrial in origin, in that its purpose must be to re-connect the person who is working with it back to Mother Earth / Gaia. Thus, any extra-terrestrial influence, makes it impossible for a stone to be grounding.

The most powerful protective stones, i.e. red jasper, sardonyx, schorl (black tourmaline), obsidian, black onyx, smoky quartz etc. all share the common characteristic that they are all strongly grounding as well. Given that tektites are not grounding, they hence cannot be protective either.

Lilly (1012) states that, “… those who have tuned into the energy of moldavite have been known to experience a series of strange, unearthly sensations, including speed, great heat, and a sense of expanded awareness.” It appears that all tektites have this sensation in common, and in fact it seems that their true use lies within their ability to expand one’s awareness beyond the earthly realm and in so doing are a great tool for psychic development.

Virtue Joannou (BSc (Hons) – Geology) is a Crystologist and Usui Tibetan Reiki Master Teacher.

Virtue discovered at an early age a sensitivity to crystal energies, not truly understanding the source of her fascination with rocks and minerals, she decided to go down the science route when she finished school and studied Geology and Environmental Science at the then Rand Afrikaans University, before doing her Honours Degree in Geology at the University of Adelaide, in Australia. After her awareness was expanded, she studied various healing modalities and discovered a deeper understanding of the metaphysical properties of crystals.

Virtue is passionate about helping others on their journey of spiritual awareness, healing & growth, through the use of alternative therapies. She offers Reiki, Reflexology, Colour Therapy and Crystal Healing through her business: Violet Sun Complementary Therapies. She regularly teaches Crystal Healing courses and Reiki. Details of upcoming workshops can be found on her Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/violetsun.therapies/

References:

Allaby M. & A. (1990). The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Earth Sciences, Oxford, Oxford University Press
Cunningham, S. (2012). Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Crystal, Gem & Metal Magic, 11^th Edition. Woodbury, Llewellyn Publications
Eason, C. (2015). The Complete Crystal Bible – 500 crystals to heal your body, mind and spirit. London, Carlton Books.
Lavender, G. (2013). Why do some meteorites create such huge craters? (online). Available at: http://www.spaceanswers.com/solar-system/why-do-some-meteorites-create-such-huge-craters/ [Accessed 20 Jun 2016]
Lilly, S. (2012). The Crystal Healing Bible. London, Quantum Books
Pellant, C. (1992). Eyewitness Handbooks – Rocks and Minerals. London, Dorling Kindersley